3000-6000 BTC loan - Hookah Lounge - 9/18/12 Update

[dank]

Hello, my name is Dank and as many of you may know, I have a multitude of business ideas I would like to begin implementing but lack the capital to get started.  I'd like to open a hookah lounge in my city, it's a very profitable and sound investment, here's why:

My city has over five colleges, leaving a huge, young customer base.  There are currently no hookah bars operating in my city, the only one that existed has temporarily stopped serving hookah to focus on the restaurant side of business.  I know for fact students would appreciate having a hookah lounge to smoke at, giving me total control over the market in a town of over 50,000 college students.  A hookah bar manager in a neighboring city (with competing lounges) makes $9000 in profit each month.  My hookah lounge will have a unique, multi-themed atmosphere, from eastern to psychedelic, to appeal to all audiences and offer a change from the ordinary, singular themed hookah bars.

What else will be great about my hookah lounge?  We'll accept Bitcoin, for one.  We'll be providing the highest quality shisha for extremely affordable prices.  We will provide live music on the weekends and operate late into the night.  We will also host promotion nights, for different colleges, to raise awareness.

Hookah lounge progress:

✓ Spreadsheet estimating profit http://www.2shared.com/file/XXj9eBSW/hookah.html (WIP) Updated 9/18/2012
✓ Spreadsheet covering budget/expenses (WIP)
✓ Designed logo
✓ Designed promotional flyers
✓ Found suitable location for lease
✓ $5000 USD investment upon fulfilling $20,000+ USD
✓ Discuss business model with attorney

Scheduled tasks:

✓ Discover all regulations, permits and licenses involved
✓ Further formulate a more-detailed business plan
✓ Register business with state
✓ Obtain loan from investor or bank (preferably Bitcoin investor)

The numbers:

The facility I'm looking at has a maximum capacity of 300-400 people, giving us plentiful room for growth.  I'm sampling different methods to charge customers, my first idea is to charge $5/guest plus $5/hookah/refill.  These prices are very low for the industry, while they are also very promising from a business standpoint.

Updated 9/18/2012:
Assuming we can attract 60 customers/day, 10 people an hour for a two hour session, throughout a 6-8 hour period, we could earn $400/day on weekdays and $1200/day on weekends.  The total profit, with these measurements, minus cost for rent, supplies, employees and $2000 in monthly expenses, would amount to $10,475/month.  This leaves us ample room for other expenses and plenty of room to grow into a larger business.

If we could get 80 customers/day, the figures would increase to $500/day income or $16,875/month profit.  At 96 customers/day, like the original spreadsheet, we would earn $22,632/month profit.  Our facility has the capacity to handle over 300 customers/day.  If we could attract just 128 people/day, we would be looking at $34,147/month profit.

Worst case scenario, we would get 48 customers/day average and earn a reasonable $5,997/month profit.  But we will make sure this won't happen, because we will promote this hookah bar's ass off.

In addition to hookah services, additional income would be made off smoking accessory sales and food/beverages.  Tobacco pipes could be resold for 200% profit, adding anywhere from $1000-2000/month in profit.  Bottled water would resell for 600% it's price, at $1/bottle, adding a few hundred over the week.  I haven't been able to look into completely, yet, but snack items and possibly small meals will further provide additional revenue to our business.

Spreadsheet containing this info is attached above.

Loan terms:

I have no problem providing identification as requested.  I'm interested in any loan between 3000 BTC and 6000 BTC for a term of 1-2 years.  To adjust for price influxations between USD inflation and BTC, we would recalculate the payments, every month, relative to the initial start up cost.  For example, you lend me 4000 BTC @ $11/coin, $44,000 and I plan on repaying it over two years with 2% interest/month.  Our monthly payment would equal $1870, or 167 BTC, including interest.  If Bitcoin should rise to $20/coin within that period and USD loses 10% purchasing power, I would recalculate the loan to $48,400 giving us a payment of 101 BTC.  This protects me from BTC price variations and you from USD devaluation.

Basically, I will adjust for USD inflation.  We can go into more detail in a contract, optionally, the goal with these terms are to prevent either party losing out because USD hits the fan.

In addition to the interest payments, I would be willing to pay 5% of each months final profit, for three years.  If we make $10,000/month in profit for three years, you'll earn a total of $18,000 (in BTC, of course) on top of the principle and interest.

Thank you for your time, I'd be happy to take any questions you may have regarding my hookah business, if you are interested in investing.

[NothinG]

The place I go locally does $20/person.
I know it's a lot, but it's the only place that does it. I don't go often, but if it where a little cheaper...

I'd say $6/person or $10/hookah with $8 refills would be something I wouldn't mind paying.
Then again, I'm willing to pay a premium just to pay with BTC.


The price to invest does seem a little high or really low depending on how your pricing structure is laid out.
I most likely wont be able to invest any BTC, but I hope this succeeds!

[Rarity]

I have no problem providing identification as requested.

I request identification.

I'd be happy to take any questions you may have regarding my hookah business.

Please answer the following questions:

Quote from: Monster-Ant on Today at 02:37:46 AM
All right. Let me get this straight...

    You intend on getting a 6,000 sqft area, and have only set aside 6K for 6 months rent. You are assuming that in a college town you will be able to rent a 6Ksqft shot within walking distance of at least one major college (preferably equidistant from all 5) for only 1K a month + deposits.
    You also claim that there is very little needed for renovations, because you will only be putting up decorations? Have you ever SEEN what an empty shop looks like before the work starts? Usually it's just a shell with possibly some load bearing beams, meaning you will have to install the bars, the seats, the cubbies, the stock room, everything.
    You claim that you won't have to worry about janitorial services because you are only running a hooka bar. Speaking as someone who has run a business before that had nothing to do with alcohol, tobacco or anything related, I *still* found vomit and feces splattered around the latrines. When dealing with customers ALWAYS assume the worst.
    You claim that you will pull in thousands of USD a week/month/day based on... umm.... magical thinking? Have you done the research on what the absolute slowest you can smoke a hooka is, and multiplied that time by 3? Because customers will pay the bare minimum for the most. Always assume the worst with customers. Your best bet to figure up income prior to getting through the first three months is max capacity/10 for the ENTIRE DAY.
    Have you included FICA, Unemployment, L&I, and everything else your workers will be needing? How much will you pay managers as opposed to servers?
    Have you looked into the prices of the tobacco that goes into the hookas? Did you remember that you will be ordering up to 30% more than you will use due to slippage?
    Have you determined how much it will cost for bouncers? Or do you plan on making supervisors/waitstaff do bouncing too?
    Will you have security cameras in place, and have you priced them?
    Have you computed how much alarm/security systems/service will cost you per month?
    Have you determined how much a safe will cost? How do you plan on securing the day's profits?
    Will you be offering punchboards and other gambling? Is it legal?
    What is your estimation of how many students may use your services and how did you arrive at it? Are you aware of the fact that a large percentage of students are on financial aid?
    How will you advertise and what is your estimation of cost?
    Have you computed how much estimated damage your equipment will take through customers and entropy? If so, how did you arrive at the figures?
    You claim that the other place has "temporarily shut down" their hooka service. Why? What kind of intake did they have? How much slippage did they suffer?
    What is the estimated cost for utilities per month?
    You realize that your 6,000 square feet is actually only 100ft x 60 feet, assuming rectangular area. What has been set aside for bathrooms (those are included in square feet), what is lost to internal walls, what is set aside for storage, what amount of the area will booths, bars, equipment, and service areas take up?
    Have you drawn (pro drafting, not on a fucking napkin) a layout of your proposed business based on available properties?
    Have you investigated maximum occupancy based on the available properties?
    You mentioned having different "theme rooms", how much will the decorations for each theme cost, how easily accessible will they be?
    Regarding the theme rooms, will you have closable doors, open door access, beaded curtains? Will you have soundproofing to ensure that each room's mood is not disturbed? If the room is enclosed how will you ensure that your customers aren't robbing each other, fucking, or shooting heroin into their balls? Always assume the costumer is a complete cretin
    How much will insurance cost on the building, what about liability insurance, and fire/flood/hurricane/smurf attack insurance?
    Will you have enough money to run the business for FIVE YEARS at a complete loss with zero income? Estimations show that for the first 5 years a business will always run in the red, and it is safer to have money set aside to keep the business going for 5 years even if you never have a single customer.
    Seeing as it is a college area, will you have parking? Will you have facilities for bicyclists?
    What other entertainment besides hookas will you have (do not list floor shows for this)? WIll you have video games, video poker, pulltabs, punchboards, chess sets? Televisions? Radios?
    Have you examined the local gambling laws?
    Have you examined insurance requirements for having live bands? Have you found out how much it will cost to provide all necessary hardware to bands aside from infrastructure? Have you investigated how much speakers and (professional) wiring will cost? As you are only operating with 6Ksqft how big will your stage be? How will you provide security for your live performers?
    You have stated you will not be serving alcohol. You also stated you will allow customers to bring their own alcohol into your establishment. Have you checked on the insurance and legality of such a thing. Additionally, have you computed the costs of drunken vandalism, drunken brawls, vomit, feces, sex, toward your operating costs? (Always assume the costumer will show up totally smashed, get the cheapest thing, sit there for 4 hours, screw their girlfriend in the bathroom, vomit on the floor, and shoot feces all over the wall before leaving behind their underwear, six used needles, 12 broken bottles, and a dead raccoon)
    Are you of age to sell the services you are intending on providing?
    Have you contacted/examined the ATF requirements for your business. (Do NOT piss off the ATF. I've worked with them before)
    Have you found out how much a business license, tax license, tobacco license, and other licenses will cost you? WIll the costs be one time, annually, or monthly?
    What are the noise ordinances in the area like?
    You should always assume that twice the maximum number of customers you can serve will loiter outside. What legal requirements do you have in that case?
    What is the police response time in the area?
    Are you prepared for protests regarding tobacco use? Tobacco use is becoming more and more of an issue on a lot of campuses, to the point where there are campuses that forbid smoking and some frats/sororities that insist their pledges sign a no-tobacco pledge. Are you prepared for this?
    Are you familiar with your states labor laws regarding breaks, pay, and minimum/maximum hours per worker depending on status?
    How much will the PoS machines for credit/debit cards and bitcoins cost you? The install fee, the equipment fees, the dedicated phone line/internet connection, software purchase/rental, merchant account agreements, and everything else involved costs money. Have you investigated the costs?
    How much will your cash register cost? Will you be going for something more "hardware" such as an antique or a replica, or will you go full modern, or will you get an "antique" case with all modern internals?
    How much time will you be allotting to train your workers? Will they receive full pay or not?
    How many workers will you have? For something like a lounge or bar you might be best for 1 manager/bartender, 2 waitresses, 1 janitorial (after closing). How long will their shifts be? Will you have overlapping shifts? Will you have the workers to cover if one or more come up sick? Will you be hiring college students, if so do you fully understand their commitments?
    Have you determined a shipper for your tobacco? Have you investigated wholesale companies and shipping companies for your non-tobacco consumables?
    Do you know your local laws on food handling? How much are the permits? Will you be paying for them, or are you going to try the scummy tactic of making your new hire pay for the test and not refunding them?
    Have you spent time scouting the successful hooka bars? Have you investigated what made them successful? Have you asked about their experiences in opening up the bar?
    Do you have interlocked services that can mutually support one another in case one aspect of your business struggles?
    Have you examined the population/services/income index?

This is the MINIMUM any realistic investor would want to know or see.

I don't think that being 18 has too much to do with your problems. After all, when I was 18 I was in charge of millions, maybe even billions of dollars of equipment and extremely dangerous equipment, as well as a property over 2 square miles that had fueling areas, helicopter pads, shipping and receiving areas, and high tech areas.

What IS a valid question, is:

What education do you have that enables you to run the business?

A high school project does not qualify you to run a small business. It introduces you to some concepts, but largely skips many things.

    Have you ever worked retail or any other job where you interacted with the public?
    Have you ever been in a management position or been trained for one?
    Have you ever received any type of training at management and operation of a business? Have you ever received training for to even be a shift leader at Wal-Mart?
    Have you taken any small business classes? This includes college or the Small Business Association, but excludes high school or before.
    Have you investigated the possibility of mentoring or apprenticing to a local business owner?
    What experience do you have running any type of business? Even a successful internet business. If so, for how long and what type of business was it?

You talk about a 40 line spreadsheet?

When I opened my business I could answer ALL of the above, my estimations on a 150+ page Excel spreadsheet were over 2,000 lines (indexed, cross referenced, and sourced), I had powerpoint demonstrations, a 75 page business plan, advice and even mentoring by other business owners, I'd investigated multiple loans, I had 13 different properties to choose from, complete with separate plans for each locations. I had months of research, planning, training, classes, and writing under my belt, as well as 20% of the loan, 6 different properties ranging from undeveloped 80 acres of woodland to 6 duplexes with a swimming pool for collateral, and even then I wasn't sure I was ready for go time.

This is the MINIMUM amount of work you should have already done. You should expect to do much much more.

You state that none of us have any right to receive answers to these questions. You keep waving around a spreadsheet you've done up with all of 40 lines.

As possible investors, be it BTC or USD or Dinar, we would be negligent with our own or our clients money to not ask those questions as well as to expect to receive answers.

You are seeking investors, but you are unwilling to make any disclosures on any information or planning?

You're going to be in for a RUDE shock if/when you go to a bank.

Finally: STOP TALKING ABOUT YOUR PERSONAL VIEWS! INVESTORS/LENDORS DON'T CARE! WE CARE ABOUT COLD HARD FACTS!

All your ignorant statements about disease and drugs are doing is showing me that you are probably incapable of managing a lemonade stand, since you rely on magical thinking and wish fulfillment as well as have a "Just World/Reality" viewpoint supported by magic.  

None of which is something I would want in someone I was going to invest money in.

You know what I, and most people, value more than education?  Intelligence.  Something I have plenty of.

"The Dunning–Kruger effect is a cognitive bias in which unskilled individuals suffer from illusory superiority, mistakenly rating their ability much higher than average. This bias is attributed to a metacognitive inability of the unskilled to recognize their mistakes."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect

[dank]

The place I go locally does $20/person.
I know it's a lot, but it's the only place that does it. I don't go often, but if it where a little cheaper...

I'd say $6/person or $10/hookah with $8 refills would be something I wouldn't mind paying.
Then again, I'm willing to pay a premium just to pay with BTC.


The price to invest does seem a little high or really low depending on how your pricing structure is laid out.
I most likely wont be able to invest any BTC, but I hope this succeeds!

I think $5/person and $5/hookah is plenty profitable, I don't see the need to charge something like $20/person.

Thank you.

[Monster-Ant]

So you ran off like a child instead of answering a SINGLE question I posted, then tried to act like intellect overcame ANY of the questions I asked.

For the cheap seats:

All right. Let me get this straight...

•     You intend on getting a 6,000 sqft area, and have only set aside 6K for 6 months rent. You are assuming that in a college town you will be able to rent a 6Ksqft shot within walking distance of at least one major college (preferably equidistant from all 5) for only 1K a month + deposits.
•     You also claim that there is very little needed for renovations, because you will only be putting up decorations? Have you ever SEEN what an empty shop looks like before the work starts? Usually it's just a shell with possibly some load bearing beams, meaning you will have to install the bars, the seats, the cubbies, the stock room, everything.
•     You claim that you won't have to worry about janitorial services because you are only running a hooka bar. Speaking as someone who has run a business before that had nothing to do with alcohol, tobacco or anything related, I *still* found vomit and feces splattered around the latrines. When dealing with customers ALWAYS assume the worst.
  
•     You claim that you will pull in thousands of USD a week/month/day based on... umm.... magical thinking? Have you done the research on what the absolute slowest you can smoke a hooka is, and multiplied that time by 3? Because customers will pay the bare minimum for the most. Always assume the worst with customers. Your best bet to figure up income prior to getting through the first three months is max capacity/10 for the ENTIRE DAY.
•     Have you included FICA, Unemployment, L&I, and everything else your workers will be needing? How much will you pay managers as opposed to servers?
•     Have you looked into the prices of the tobacco that goes into the hookas? Did you remember that you will be ordering up to 30% more than you will use due to slippage?
•     Have you determined how much it will cost for bouncers? Or do you plan on making supervisors/waitstaff do bouncing too?
•     Will you have security cameras in place, and have you priced them?
•     Have you computed how much alarm/security systems/service will cost you per month?
•     Have you determined how much a safe will cost? How do you plan on securing the day's profits?
•     Will you be offering punchboards and other gambling? Is it legal?
•     What is your estimation of how many students may use your services and how did you arrive at it? Are you aware of the fact that a large percentage of students are on financial aid?
•     How will you advertise and what is your estimation of cost?
•     Have you computed how much estimated damage your equipment will take through customers and entropy? If so, how did you arrive at the figures?
•     You claim that the other place has "temporarily shut down" their hooka service. Why? What kind of intake did they have? How much slippage did they suffer?
•     What is the estimated cost for utilities per month?
•     You realize that your 6,000 square feet is actually only 100ft x 60 feet, assuming rectangular area. What has been set aside for bathrooms (those are included in square feet), what is lost to internal walls, what is set aside for storage, what amount of the area will booths, bars, equipment, and service areas take up?
•     Have you drawn (pro drafting, not on a fucking napkin) a layout of your proposed business based on available properties?
•     Have you investigated maximum occupancy based on the available properties?
•     You mentioned having different "theme rooms", how much will the decorations for each theme cost, how easily accessible will they be?
•     Regarding the theme rooms, will you have closable doors, open door access, beaded curtains? Will you have soundproofing to ensure that each room's mood is not disturbed? If the room is enclosed how will you ensure that your customers aren't robbing each other, fucking, or shooting heroin into their balls? Always assume the costumer is a complete cretin
•    How much will insurance cost on the building, what about liability insurance, and fire/flood/hurricane/smurf attack insurance?
•     Will you have enough money to run the business for FIVE YEARS at a complete loss with zero income? Estimations show that for the first 5 years a business will always run in the red, and it is safer to have money set aside to keep the business going for 5 years even if you never have a single customer.
•     Seeing as it is a college area, will you have parking? Will you have facilities for bicyclists?
•     What other entertainment besides hookas will you have (do not list floor shows for this)? WIll you have video games, video poker, pulltabs, punchboards, chess sets? Televisions? Radios?
•     Have you examined the local gambling laws?
•     Have you examined insurance requirements for having live bands? Have you found out how much it will cost to provide all necessary hardware to bands aside from infrastructure?
• Have you investigated how much speakers and (professional) wiring will cost? As you are only operating with 6Ksqft how big will your stage be? How will you provide security for your live performers?
•     You have stated you will not be serving alcohol. You also stated you will allow customers to bring their own alcohol into your establishment. Have you checked on the insurance and legality of such a thing. Additionally, have you computed the costs of drunken vandalism, drunken brawls, vomit, feces, sex, toward your operating costs? (Always assume the costumer will show up totally smashed, get the cheapest thing, sit there for 4 hours, screw their girlfriend in the bathroom, vomit on the floor, and shoot feces all over the wall before leaving behind their underwear, six used needles, 12 broken bottles, and a dead raccoon)
•     Are you of age to sell the services you are intending on providing?
•     Have you contacted/examined the ATF requirements for your business. (Do NOT piss off the ATF. I've worked with them before)
•     Have you found out how much a business license, tax license, tobacco license, and other licenses will cost you? WIll the costs be one time, annually, or monthly?
•     What are the noise ordinances in the area like?
•     You should always assume that twice the maximum number of customers you can serve will loiter outside. What legal requirements do you have in that case?
•     What is the police response time in the area?
•     Are you prepared for protests regarding tobacco use? Tobacco use is becoming more and more of an issue on a lot of campuses, to the point where there are campuses that forbid smoking and some frats/sororities that insist their pledges sign a no-tobacco pledge. Are you prepared for this?
•     Are you familiar with your states labor laws regarding breaks, pay, and minimum/maximum hours per worker depending on status?
•     How much will the PoS machines for credit/debit cards and bitcoins cost you? The install fee, the equipment fees, the dedicated phone line/internet connection, software purchase/rental, merchant account agreements, and everything else involved costs money. Have you investigated the costs?
•     How much will your cash register cost? Will you be going for something more "hardware" such as an antique or a replica, or will you go full modern, or will you get an "antique" case with all modern internals?
•     How much time will you be allotting to train your workers? Will they receive full pay or not?
•     How many workers will you have? For something like a lounge or bar you might be best for 1 manager/bartender, 2 waitresses, 1 janitorial (after closing). How long will their shifts be?
• Will you have overlapping shifts? Will you have the workers to cover if one or more come up sick? Will you be hiring college students, if so do you fully understand their commitments?
•     Have you determined a shipper for your tobacco? Have you investigated wholesale companies and shipping companies for your non-tobacco consumables?
•     Do you know your local laws on food handling? How much are the permits? Will you be paying for them, or are you going to try the scummy tactic of making your new hire pay for the test and not refunding them?
•     Have you spent time scouting the successful hooka bars? Have you investigated what made them successful? Have you asked about their experiences in opening up the bar?
•     Do you have interlocked services that can mutually support one another in case one aspect of your business struggles?
•     Have you examined the population/services/income index?

This is the MINIMUM any realistic investor would want to know or see.

I don't think that being 18 has too much to do with your problems. There are plenty of responsible and trained 18 year olds in charge of much more than a hooka bar.

What IS a valid question, is:

What education do you have that enables you to run the business?

A high school project does not qualify you to run a small business. It introduces you to some concepts, but largely skips many things.

   

• Have you ever worked retail or any other job where you interacted with the public?
•     Have you ever been in a management position or been trained for one?
•     Have you ever received any type of training at management and operation of a business? Have you ever received training for to even be a shift leader at Wal-Mart?
•     Have you taken any small business classes? This includes college or the Small Business Association, but excludes high school or before.
•     Have you investigated the possibility of mentoring or apprenticing to a local business owner?
•     What experience do you have running any type of business? Even a successful internet business. If so, for how long and what type of business was it?

You talk about a 40 line spreadsheet?

When I opened my business I could answer ALL of the above, my estimations on a 150+ page Excel spreadsheet were over 2,000 lines (indexed, cross referenced, and sourced), I had powerpoint demonstrations, a 75 page business plan, advice and even mentoring by other business owners, I'd investigated multiple loans, I had 13 different properties to choose from, complete with separate plans for each locations. I had months of research, planning, training, classes, and writing under my belt, as well as 20% of the loan, 6 different properties ranging from undeveloped 80 acres of woodland to 6 duplexes with a swimming pool for collateral, and even then I wasn't sure I was ready for go time.

This is the MINIMUM amount of work you should have already done. You should expect to do much much more.

You state that none of us have any right to receive answers to these questions. You keep waving around a spreadsheet you've done up with all of 40 lines.

As possible investors, be it BTC or USD or Dinar, we would be negligent with our own or our clients money to not ask those questions as well as to expect to receive answers.

You are seeking investors, but you are unwilling to make any disclosures on any information or planning?

You're going to be in for a RUDE shock if/when you go to a bank.

Finally: STOP TALKING ABOUT YOUR PERSONAL VIEWS! INVESTORS/LENDORS DON'T CARE! WE CARE ABOUT COLD HARD FACTS!

All your ignorant statements about disease and drugs are doing is showing me that you are probably incapable of managing a lemonade stand, since you rely on magical thinking and wish fulfillment as well as have a "Just World/Reality" viewpoint supported by magic.

None of which is something I would want in someone I was going to invest money in.

Finally:

You know what I, and most people, value more than education?  Intelligence.  Something I have plenty of.

An intelligent man, who approaches the logistics of opening a business intelligently, would have answers to all of the above.

Or at least thank the person who listed all of that for giving them an idea of what a lendor/investor might ask.

I think $5/person and $5/hookah is plenty profitable, I don't see the need to charge something like $20/person.

Will just that cover the operating costs? Otherwise you are operating at a loss per customer.

You say you're intelligent.

Do your homework, like any intelligent adult attempting to open a business.

Show us that you are willing to commit the time and effort needed just to SHOW investors/lendors that you can make a profit.

[smracer]

I want to build a roller coaster in my backyard.

I can charge neighborhood kids $2 a ride after school.  If I can attract 50 kids per day and 150 on the weekends I can make $1100 a week.  I can also sell snow cones for additional income.  My backyard is large and rarely used for anything else.  I have ridden lots of roller coasters in my life and feel I can design a better one.

I have 200amp service so I will have no trouble with the power.

I am seeking 50,000 BTC.  Do it.

[kentrolla]

dank is not going to take anyone's advice. He is clearly just a stubborn, starry-eyed kid.  He said himself that he only learns through experiences. Let him learn the hard way.

[dank]

Your post is full of misinformation and negativity.  Why did you spend so much energy on me if you're not interested in investing?  I don't care about what you did to become successful, this is what I'm doing.  I'm talking to my lawyer, tomorrow.  I'm getting counseling from SBA or a local college for the business aspect.  I'll then be forming a budget over this week.  Then, I will get a loan and proceed to open my hookah lounge.

I have the perfect opportunity here, I really just want to do business.

[Monster-Ant]

Your post is full of misinformation and negativity.

CHALLENGE!!!

Please show me one thing that is misinformation.

 Why did you spend so much energy on me if you're not interested in investing?

What makes you think I wouldn't have? What makes you think I might not have done the SBA pay it forward and helped?

 I don't care about what you did to become successful, this is what I'm doing.

Why not? Is it because you think none of those things apply to getting a loan or running a successful business?

 I'm talking to my lawyer, tomorrow.

YOU AREN'T EVEN AT THE LAWYER STAGE! You're still at the research/data gathering phase.

 I'm getting counseling from SBA or a local college for the business aspect.

Wait, you don't even intend on getting training or taking a small business course?

 I'll then be forming a budget over this week.

How will you form a budget without the data I asked about?

 Then, I will get a loan and proceed to open my hookah lounge.

No you won't. And no you won't.

I have the perfect opportunity here, I really just want to do business.

You have an idea and a dream, that's it.

Dank, contrary to your belief, that post was done in hopes of helping you. I honestly thought you might have the answers to those questions. I was willing to assist, over the extrawebnetubes, in getting your ducks in a row and making a successful plan.

Seriously, Dank, listen to the voice of experience.

I told you, it has NOTHING to do with the fact you're 18. Get that through your head. You state you're intelligent, USE your intellect. Intellect that is not applied or challenged is worthless.

Being 18 has nothing to do with it. I've known, met, worked with, and worked for people who were 18-20 who were able to launch and keep going successful businesses. Some were highly intelligent, others were intelligent enough to know what kind of data they needed and had the work ethic and desire to accomplish what needed to be done.

[dank]

I really do not need you to preach to me how to think and operate my business.  You're underestimating my intellectual abilities and you don't even know me.  If you have something positive to share, please do so, I have yet to see that.

[Rarity]

I'd be happy to take any questions you may have regarding my hookah business.

[dank]

I'd be happy to take any questions you may have regarding my hookah business, if you are interested in investing.

[Monster-Ant]

I really do not need you to preach to me how to think and operate my business.  If you have something positive to share, please do so, I have yet to see that.

I'm still challenging you to show ONE thing that was misinformation.

Is that the line you plan on telling investors and lendors that you approach if they ask those questions?

Seriously, Dank, those answers should have just rolled off your tongue.

It's not telling you how to think, it's asking legitimate questions regarding someone who wishes to start a business with OTHER PEOPLE'S MONEY!

Do have any actual answers, or just vague claims of a 40 line spreadsheet nobody can see and statements you'll be doing things in the future?

Do you HAVE a business plan?

Are you interested in answering ANY questions that need answers beyond "40 page spreadsheet!"

Because my interest in funding, or recommending funding, is dropping by the second here.

[BorderBits]

Dude, you can't even follow through on sending me the link to your spreadsheet.

[Rarity]

I'd be happy to take any questions you may have regarding my hookah business, if you are interested in investing. Unless I don't want to answer, in which case I will decide you aren't actually interested.

[dank]

I really do not need you to preach to me how to think and operate my business.  If you have something positive to share, please do so, I have yet to see that.

I'm still challenging you to show ONE thing that was misinformation.

Is that the line you plan on telling investors and lendors that you approach if they ask those questions?

Seriously, Dank, those answers should have just rolled off your tongue.

It's not telling you how to think, it's asking legitimate questions regarding someone who wishes to start a business with OTHER PEOPLE'S MONEY!

Do have any actual answers, or just vague claims of a 40 line spreadsheet nobody can see and statements you'll be doing things in the future?

Do you HAVE a business plan?

You also claim that there is very little needed for renovations, because you will only be putting up decorations?

There, second bullet point of yours.  I never said I would only be putting up decorations, seriously?

You claim that you will pull in thousands of USD a week/month/day based on... umm.... magical thinking? Have you done the research on what the absolute slowest you can smoke a hooka is, and multiplied that time by 3?

This shit really is not necessary.

http://www.2shared.com/file/Wz7mz1Wv/hookah.html

Here's the spreadsheet, please note, this is a live spreadsheet, so I can add variables over time such as taxes, licenses, insurance or permits.  This spreadsheet calculates profitability with 96 customers/day in groups of four, average, for two hours each.

[Rarity]

This is not very detailed at all.

1 Hose hookah      $0.00
2 Hose hookah      $2.00
3 Hose hookah      $4.00
Per person      $5.00
Per bowl      $5.00
Per large bowl      $8.00
      
People/session   4   $25.00
Sessions/hour   6   $150.00
Hours/day   8   $1,200.00
Hours/session   2   $600.00
Sessions/day   24   
      
Friday multiplier   3   $1,800.00
Saturday multiplier   3   $1,800.00
Sunday multiplier   2   $1,200.00
      
Weekly income      $9,600.00
Monthly income      $38,400.00
      
Employee wage      $8.00
Employees weekday   3   $24.00
Employees weekend   5   $40.00
Wage/weekday      $192.00
Wage/weekend      $320.00
Wage/week      $1,728.00
      
Shisha   250   $13.00
Shisha/session   25   $1.30
Coals   300   $56.00
Coals/session   2   $0.37
Cost/session      $1.67
Cost/week      $963.84
      
Monthly lease      $3,000.00
Monthly expenses      $500.00
      
Weekly profit      $3,408.16
Monthly profit      $13,632.64
Annual profit      $163,591.68

[dank]

Here's the spreadsheet, please note, this is a live spreadsheet, so I can add variables over time such as taxes, licenses, insurance or permits.

[Rarity]

I think maybe you should do that before seeking investors.  There is not enough data for a decision here.

[dank]

I think maybe you should do that before seeking investors.  There is not enough data for a decision here.

That is not up to you to decide, but the actual investor.  Please stop spamming my thread with your negativity.